Insulator.



Lx STEINB'ERGER.

INSULATOR.

APPLICATION FlLED JULY 25,1912.

Patented Dec. 28, 1915.

. INVENTOR WITNESSES LOUIS STEINBEBGEB, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

INSULATOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed July 25, 1912. Serial I'm 711,465.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LOUIS Srnmnnnonn, residing at Brooklyn, county ofKings, city and State of New York, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Insulators, of which the following is a. specification.

This invention relates to a new and improved insulating supporting meansfor electric conductors, designed to protect the line, as well asitself, against the evil effects of abnormal electrical potentialdischarges such as might be produced by a line becoming short-circuitedwith another line, or, in the event of a lightning discharge strikingthe line or one or more of the insulating line supporting members.

Among the various objects to be attained by the present invention, thefollowing may be particularly enumerated: 1. To provide an improvedinsulating line supporting means which will remain intact during anabnormal electric discharge from line to ground. 2. To provide aninsulating supporting means with means whereby an abnormal discharge ofelectricity may be conducted from line to ground without injuriouslyaffecting the otherwise inherent insulating qualities of the insulator.3. To proi 'ide an insulating line supporting means offering greatresistance to punctuie, and which will not be rendered inoperative byheavy po tential discharges such as might be caused bv a lightningdischarge being transmitted from line to ground through said supportingmeans. 4. To provide means whereby an electric discharge from theconductor supported by the insulator inav be intercepted and distributedto all sides of the insulator, thereby preventing such concentration ofthe area of discharge as would tend to destroy or seriously impair theinsulator. 5. To provide, upon an insulator, a plurality of exposedspaced conducting elements dis- Jose an an. i a

1 d d 'anged in such a manner th t an unusually heavypote-ntialdischarge will be induced to are around the exterior of the insulatorwhereby to reduce the danger of puncture. 6. Top-rovide upon theexterior surface ofan insulator a. plurality of spaced, concentricallyarranged, conducting elements which will operate to collect anddistribute an unusual potential discharge, whereby such discharge willtend to take place about the entire surface of the insulator incontradistinction to a localized discharge about one ortion of thesurface of the insulator. 7. 0 provide a plurality of spaced membersabout the body of an insulator, and so related to each other that eachof said members will collect and distribute the potential discharge sothat the discharge will arc progressively or in series from oneconcentric member to the other over the surface of the insulator fromthe point. of entrance of the discharge to the point of sup port of theinsulator. 8. To provide an insulator, of the pin type, havingoutstanding weather protective flanges or disks, with concentricallydisposed metallic rings upon the upper portions of said protective partsfor the purpose of inducing an electric discharge to are about saidprotective parts rather than to puncture the same in its passage fromline to ground. 9'. To construct an insulator, having protectiveoutstanding concentrically disposed metallic.

Patented Dec. 28, 1915.

flanges, with means which, while operatingparts, will also tend toprevent the rupture or destruction thereof during the passage of anabnormal potential discharge from line to ground. 10. To provide a newand improved insulator of the pin type. 11. To provide new and improvedmeans for supporting a pin type form of insulator. 12. To provide aninsulator with a columnar portion of insulating material having atubular metallic member attached thereto and depending therefrom,adapted to be detachably connected with a support for the insulator. 13.To provide the tubular member referred to, with an interiorly threadedsurface preferably throughout its length, the threads within the upperportion of said member serving as a grip to be engaged by the insulatingmaterial of the insulator, and the threads within the lower portion ofsaid member serving as a means whereby said insulator may be detachablyconnected with a suitably threaded support. 14. To form said tubularmember withsuitable apertures adjacent its upper end, so that thematerial of the insulator may extend into said apertures to preventrelative rotation between the tubular member and the insulator.

Other objects and aims of the invention, more or less broad than thosestated above, together with the advantages inherent, will be in partobvious and in part specifically referred to in the course of thefollowing description.

'to mechanically strengthen said outstanding In the accompanyingdrawing, I have illustrated a side, elevational view, partlyin sectionof one form of embodiment of an insulator wherein my invention isemployed.

It is Well known, that a heavy charge of current in a supportedconductor, especially when said charge is impressed suddenly upon theconductor at one point, such as is often produced by a stroke oflightning striking the conductor, or in other ways, will cause a fusingaway of one side of the insulator nearest the point where the charge isimpressed, and that this fusing at one side of the material of theinsulator is the result of the more or less direct passage of the heavycharge from the conductor into the support of the insulator along thatside. I have provided means whose purpose it is to eleminate this andother objections inherent in similar structures as hithertodevised, saidmeans consisting of collecting and distributing members provided uponthe insulator, as will hereinafter be described.

r Referring to the drawing, the numeral 1- indicates the body portion ofthe form of insulator selected for illustrating the principles of thisinvention. In this embodiment, wherein I have illustrated an insulatorof the pin type, said insulator comprises a substantially solidcylindrical body member considerably longer than wide, and having atransverse groove 2 extending across its upper end in which theconductor 3 is adapted to rest, as clearly illustrated. An

annular groove 4 is preferably formed in r the material of the bodyportion 1, adjacent arm or other support 10 for the insulator;

A suitable washer 11 is preferably interposed between the upper surfaceof the support 10, and the under annular shoulder 12 of the extension 8,and one or more nuts 13, are threaded upon the lower end of the bolt 9for drawing the extension 8 against the upper surface of the support toclamp the bolt, and thus the extension 8 thereof, rigidly to thesupport. The lower end of the body portion 1 of the insulator ispreferably fixed within the tubular member 6'by being molded therein, sothat the material of which said insulator is composed, interlocks withthe threads formed within said tubu lar member. One or more apertures,as at 14., may be formed through the wall of the tubular member, so thatthe material of the insulator may extend into said apertures forpreventing-relative rotation and consequent disengagement of theinsulator from said tubular member. a

In the present instance, I have provided the body portion 1 of theinsulator with a plurality of protective annular flanges or disks, theobject of which is to maintain certain portions of the insulator dry inthe" integral with the body portionl adjacent the upper end thereof, theupper surface of said flange flaring outwardly and downwardly preferablyjust beneath the annular groove 4. A flange or hood 16, of a somewhatsimilar diameter than the flange 15, extends outwardly and downwardlyfrom the body portion 1, at a point just above the upper end of thetubular member 6, the

' lower surface of said flange or hood flaring outwardly and downwardlyalmost directly from the upper annular edge of said tubular member, andintermediate the flan es 15 and 16 is a flange 17 which is pre erably'merged into the body portion 1 in the angle formed by the under surface18 of the flange 15, and the surface of the body portion 1,'

and flares outwardly and downwardly from f I said angle.

Intermediate the under surface 19 of the flange 17 and the upper surface27 of the flange 16, the entire surface of the body portion 1 ispreferably coveredand protected I by a metallic ring or sleeve 20, theupper annular edge of said sleeve being preferably flared outwardly toconform to the shape of the inclosed insulating material, and the upperand lower edges thereof being preferably turned inwardly, as shown, toenter the body of insulating material. The under surface of each of. theflanges 15, 16 and 17 is inclined upwardly toward the body portionof theinsulator, so as to preclude the pos sibllity of a flow of liquid alongsaid surface from the outer peripheries of the disks toward the bodv.portion, and the flange 15, I

being of a considerably larger diameter than the flanges. 16 and 17,serves to prevent access of direct rain water, sleet, etc., to the uppersurfaces of said flanges, so that they are protected and maintainedrelatively dry and are thus rendered more eflicient in resisting thepassage of currents over their surfaces, as will be understood.

Each of the flanges 15, 16 and 17 has its outer annular edge providedwith a ring of conducting material, said rings being indicated by thenumerals 21, 22 and 23 respectively. These rings each comprise preferably a section of metal bent upon itself so as to inclose a portion ofboth the upper and under surfaces of the respective flanges as well asthe extreme edges thereof. The

' rings are embedded partially in the material of the flanges so thattheir outer surfaces are preferably flush with the surfaces of theflanges, and each of the marginal edges of said rings is preferablyturned or bent inwardly so as to form a holding grip in the material ofthe flange to prevent displacement, and to give strength to the ring andfor reinforcing the disk and also to preclude the possibility ofmoisture entering and forming conductive paths beneath the rings. Uponthe upper surface of the flanges are also arranged rings 24, 25 and 26respectively. These latter rings are also preferably partially embeddedwithin the material of the respective flanges so that their uppersurfaces stand preferably flush with the upper surfaces of said flanges,and do not tend to collect dust or interfere with the flow of rainwater, etc., over said flanges. The opposite marginal edges of theselatter rings are also bent inwardly so as to be further embedded withinthe material of the flanges. In each instance the rings24, 25 and 26 aresuitably placed with respect to the rings 21, 22 and 23, beingsubstantially concentric therewith, but of less diameter.

From the structure described, it will be noted that a charge ofelectricity emanating from the conductor 3, and attempting to pass intothe tubular member 6, will first encounter the flange 15 and tend topass through the material of said flange to one or the other of therings 20 or 26. An easier path, however, is provided along the uppersurface of the flange by reason of the provision of the ring 24. Thecharge thus being induced to travel to the ring 24, said ring willoperate to distribute it entirely around the body portion. The chargecontinuing its passage, will follow the path of least resistance whichis obviously across the surface of the disk, bordering the ring 24, andto the ring 21 where it will be further dissipated and distributedaround the body portion. It will then pass to the ring 26. Note herethat passage through the material of the disk 15 to the ring 26 offersconsiderably greater resistance than the passage from the ring 24through the ring 21, and thence to the ring 26. The path, through thematerial of the flange 17, to the metallic sleeve or ring 20, being of arelatively great resistance, the charge passes to the ring 23, thence tothering 20. From the lower annular edge of the ring 20, its path ofleast resistance is along the surface 27 of the flange 16 and to thenext metallic member which is the ring 25; passage then to the ring'22is of less resistance thanthe passagethrough the flange. The member 6 isthus reached. This collecting and distributing of the charge may, of

course, be carried on to any extent by the additionof more flanges tothe body portion of the insulator, each flange having its peculiararrangement of collector and distributer rings. The principal object, inthis particular, however, is to arrange the flanges so that theinsulator, as a whole, is rendered proof against the passage of ordinarycurrents and so that the flanges not only serve to provide relativelydry areas, but are, at the same time, arranged so as to cooperate with,and lend effectiveness to, the distributer rings which they carry.

The rings are so arranged as to practically compel the passage of thecharge over the surface of the flanges rather than through the materialof the flanges or the body portion, so that while some of the rings arerelatively close together, they are separated by walls of insulationaround which the charge is practically compelled to pass in going fromone ring to the other. The member 6 serves also as a distributer ordissipating ring with reference to the passage of a charge of currentinto the common support 10.

It should be noted that the principles of this invention might bedescribed as embodying a conductor, extending from the line to theground, and comprising alternate annular sections of high and lowresistance, the sections of low resistance operating to distribute thecharge, when abnormal, and thus to protect the conductor from injury,and the sections of high resistance affording ample impedance to thepassage of normal charges.

Asmany changes could be made in the above construction, and manyapparently widelydifferent embodiments of this invention could be madewithout departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all mattercontained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawingshall be interpreted as illustrative only, and that the language used inthe following claims is intended to cover all of the generic andspecific features of the invention.

Having thus described my invention,what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is:

1. An insulator comprising a columnar body portion of insulatingmaterial having means adapting it to be attached to a support by itslower end, and having means atits upper end for attaching a conductor,an annular flange intermediate its ends, and a plurality of conductorrings of different diameters concentrically arranged about the body onthe upper surface of the flange.

2. An insulator comprising a columnar body portion of insulatingmaterial having means adapting it to be attached to asupport port by itslower end, and having-means at its upper end for attaching a conductor,an

annular flange intermediate its ends, a'plurality of closely juxtaposedconcentrically arranged rings of conducting material carried by saidflange upon one surface there. of, and another ring of conductingmaterial arranged substantially concentrically with said first rings butbeing disposed upon the opposite surface of said flange so as tointerpose .the'material of the flange between one of the first mentionedrings and said last ring. I

3. An insulator comprising a columnar body portion of insulatingmaterial, having attaching means at one end and being formed with meansfor attaching a conductor to its otherend, a ring'of conducting materialdisposed about said body portion intermediate the planes of its ends, aflange of insulating material depending around said ring and a secondring carried upon the outer surface of said flange.

4. An insulator, comprising a columnar body portion ofv insulatingmaterial having attaching means at one end, and being formed with meansfor attaching a conduc tor to its other end, a ring of conductingmaterial disposed aboutsaid body portion intermediate the planes of itsends; a flange of insulating material dependent around said ring, andother rings of conducting material carried by said flange for thepurpose set forth.

5. An insulator, comprising a columnar body portion of insulatingmaterial having attaching means at one end, and being formed with meansfor attaching a conductor to its other end; a plurality of independentannular flanges formed spaced apart along the length of said bodyportion, and a plurality of rings of conducting material carried by eachof said flanges disposed to provide a path of less resistance betweenrings on a flange than between the rings of one flange and the rings ofanother, whereby a charge will be induced to pass entirely over thesurface of one flange before reaching the next flange.

6. An insulator comprising a columnar body portion of insulatingmaterial having attaching means at one end, and being formed with meansfor attachinga conductor to its other end; an annular flange formedintermediate the ends of said body, a ring of conducting material fixedupon the circumferential edge portion of said flange,

and a second ring of conducting material fixed to the upper surface ofsaid flange substantially concentric with said firstring and separatedtherefrom by only a relatively narrow strip of the surface of saidflange, for the purpose set forth.

7. An insulator, comprising a columnar body portion of insulatingmaterial having attaching means at one end, and being formed with. meansfor attaching a con- I ductor to its other end; an annular flange formedintermediate the ends of said body,

a ring of conducting material fixed upon the circumferential edgeportion of said flange, a second ring of conducting material fixed tothe upper surface of said flange substan-' 'tially concentric with saidfirst rmg and centrically with said other rings, but being Y arranged sothat the material of the flange is interposed between it and said firstmentioned ring, all for the purpose set'forth.

8. An insulator comprising a body portion having outstanding protectiveflanges or disks and a plurality of annular concentrically disposedmetallic members located upon the edges of the said outstanding part-s,upon the surface thereof, and upon said body portion.

9. An insulator comprising a body portion and outstanding protectiveportions, and concentric metallic bands provided upon said body portionand upon said Protective portions.

10. An insulator comprising a body portion of insulating material andoutstanding disks or flanges, and bands of metal provided upon the edgeportions of said disks or flanges and upon their upper surfaces.

11. An insulator comprising a body portion of insulating material andoutstanding disks or flanges, and bands of metal provided upon the edgeportions of said disks or flanges and upon their upper surfaces, saidbands lying flush with the surface of the insulating material.

12. An insulator comprising a solid integral columnar bodv portion,conductor attaching means provided thereon. a metallic sleeve encirclingsaid bodv portion spaced from the said conductor attaching means. a ringof conducting material encircling said body intermediate said sleeve andsaid conductor attaching means, and a body of insulating materialinterposed between said sleeve and ring.

13. An insulator comprising a solid integral columnar body portion,conductor attaching means provided thereon at one end, a metallic ringencircling said body portion adjacent said end, a metallic ringencircling said body portion adjacent the opposite end of said bodyportion. and an annular flange projecting laterally from said bodyportion intermediate said rings.

14. An insulator comprising a columnar body portion, a conductorattaching means provided thereon at one end, a metallic currentdissipating sleeve encircling said body portion at the other endextending part-way along the length thereof, a ring of conductingmaterial encircling said body intermediate its ends, and said sleevehaving a part servin as attaching means for the insulator.

15. In an insulator, an attaching means therefor, comprising a metallicsleeve within which a part of said insulator is molded, said sleevebeing threaded substantially throughout its inner surface, a portion ofsaid threads serving as gripping means with which the material of theinsulator engages, said sleeve being also formed with shoulder portionsin a plane transversally of the threads against which portions of thematerial of the insulator engage to prevent unscrewing of the sleevefrom the insulator, and another portion of said threads serving asattaching means for said insulator.

16. An insulator comprising a support for a line, and a plurality ofconcentrically arranged electrically disconnected conductor membersembedded therein interposed between line and ground.

17. An insulator comprising a solid stem of insulating material havingmeans for supporting a line and ineans adapting it to be attached to asupport, said stem being provided with outstanding protective members,and said protective members having spaced conductive members interposedbetween said line supporting means and said attaching means.

18. An insulating means comprising a substantially disk-shaped barrierof insulating material interposed between a conductor wire and ground,attaching means for attaching a conductor wire at one side thereof,attaching means for attaching a ground to the opposite side thereof, anda plurality of conductive members arranged upon the sur face of saidbarrier substantially concentrically of an imaginary line extendingbetween said attaching means.

19. Insulating means comprising a barrier member of insulating materialinterposed between a conductor wire and ground, and having one of itsfaces directed toward said conductor wire, attaching means for attachinga conductor wire at one side thereof, attaching means for attaching aground to the opposite side thereof, and a plurality of conductormembers arranged upon the men tioned face of said barrier, so as to betraversed in series by an electrical discharge between said attachingmeans.

20. An insulator comprising a disk-shaped member of insulating material,attaching means for attaching a conductor wire centrally at one sidethereof, attaching means for attaching a ground centrally at theopposite side thereof, and a plurality of conductor rings carried uponthe surface of said disk substantially concentrically of the centralportion thereof.

21. An insulator comprising a body portion of insulating materialadapted to be attached to a support by its lower end, said body havingits upper end formed with means adapted for the attachment of aconductor, said body being formed with an annular flange intermediateits ends, and a plurality of closely juxtaposed concentrically arrangedrings of conducting material carried by said flange.

22. An insulator comprising a columnar body portion of insulatingmaterial, having attaching means at one end, and being formed with meansfor attaching a conductor to its other end, a ring of conductingmaterial disposed about said body portion intermediate the planes of itsends, a flange of insulating material formed upon said body portionabove said ring, a flange of insulating material formed upon said bodyportion below said ring, and a ring of conducting material carried byeach of said flanges.

23. An insulator comprising a body portion of insulating material havingmeans for attaching it to a support and having means at its upper endfor attaching a conductor, an annular flange and a plurality ofconductor rings of different diameters concentrically arranged on theupper surface of the flange.

In witness whereof, I aflix my signature in the presence of twowitnesses.

LOUIS STEINBERGER.

Witnesses:

NATHALIE THOMPSON, L. Gosrono HANDIE.

